Biodegradable blend membranes of poly (butylene succinate)/cellulose acetate/dextran: Preparation, characterization and performance.

The aim of this study is to prepare biodegradable blend membranes of poly (butylene succinate) (PBS)/cellulose acetate (CA)/dextran (DEX). The effect of DEX concentration as an additive on morphology, porosity, hydrophilicity, mechanical strength, biodegradability, antifouling properties, and performance of dairy wastewater treatment of the membranes was investigated. Results demonstrated that larger pores were formed in the membrane structure and the porosity of the membranes was remarkably increased by adding DEX concentration. Moreover, contact angle was reduced up to 16% with the increase in the DEX concentration from 0 to 2wt.%. The presence of a larger amount of DEX increased the membrane degradation. Furthermore, the results of filtration tests showed that the amounts of pure water flux and permeate flux of wastewater was improved by 154% and 1543%, respectively, by increasing the additive concentration to 2wt.%. The PBS/CA/DEX membranes displayed a superior antifouling performance compared to the PBS/CA membrane.